A payment required by a lessor or managing agent to cover the costs of maintaining and running a development (e.g. gardening and decorating and also insuring a block of flats).

The voluntary conclusion of any litigation by the parties involved. Settlement can be made at any time before a final hearing.

A binding contract that records the terms and payments to be made from an employer to a current or a former employee in return for a waiver by the employee of any defined contractual and statutory employment law claims, for example unfair dismissal. For a settlement agreement to be legally binding an employee must seek independent legal advice on its terms.

A person who creates a trust.

Unfavourable treatment on the grounds of a person’s gender; or a policy or a criterion which has an adverse effect due to a person’s sex or marital status.

Cruelty or violence towards another person, involving inappropriate and non-consensual sexual activity.

Unfavourable treatment on the grounds of a person’s sexual orientation, or perceived sexual orientation.

The term used to describe couples who divorce or separate later in life.

A skeleton argument is intended to identify both for the parties and the court, those points which are, and those that are not, in issue, and the nature of the argument in relation to those points which are in issue.

An order made by the local authority designating an area to be one in which only smokeless fuels may be burnt (i.e. not coal or wood).

A regular payment of money paid by one spouse or former spouse to the other following the breakdown of marriage. Payments can be ordered by the Court and such payments can be paid for a definite term or under a joint lives order. The joint lives order comes to an end on either the recipients remarriage, the death of either party or further order.

Your husband or your wife.

Stamp duty land tax (SDLT) paid to the government on the purchase of a property over a certain value. See our SDLT calculator.

In the context of a CICA claim – giving a statement to the police is giving them your formal description of the crime.

In the same way that the common law can impose a duty, a similar type of duty can be imposed by an Act of Parliament, otherwise known as legislation. For example, to drive in excess of the prescribed speed limit would be a breach of this statutory duty. It would also potentially be a breach of the common law duty to drive carefully. Breaches of statutory duty can in themselves provide an entitlement of compensation, but only if the cause of the injury is linked to the breach of duty.

Where a property moves due to inadequate foundations or severe change to the underlying ground. This results in an instability in the structure of a building often evidenced by cracks in walls.

The termination of a worker’s employment due to a serious incident (usually gross misconduct) that can justify not providing any notice before the termination or any payment in lieu of notice.

This is a report carried out on the physical state of a property.